Helical french fries, or curlicue fries as they are more commonly known, have long been a popular food item. Apparatus suitable for making strips for curlicue french fries have been known for decades. Early devices typically used a simple hand crank mechanism or motor to rotate the potato against a fixed slicing means adapted to slice the potato into helical strips.
More recently, automated commercial equipment has been developed for slicing potatoes into helical strips on a mass production basis. Such commercial equipment typically includes means for feeding non-rotating potatoes into slicing engagement with a rotating knife assembly designed to slice the potatoes into helical strips. See, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,644,838 to Samson et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 4,979,418 to Julian et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 4,926,726 to Julian; U.S. Pat. No. 5,042,342 to Julian; U.S. Pat. No. 5,168,784 to Foster et al.; and U.S. Pat. No. 5,179,881 to Frey et al., the teachings of which are herein incorporated by reference.
More specifically, such commercial equipment generally includes a potato conveying system or feed means for transporting the potatoes in singulated fashion to the rotating knife assembly. In the '838, '418 and '726 patents, the conveying system disclosed therein is a mechanical conveying system with moving parts. In the '342, '784 and '881 patents, the conveying system disclosed therein is a hydraulic conveying system or "water gun" which conveys the singulated potatoes in a fast moving water flow to the rotating knife assembly. The potatoes are entrained in the water flow and pumped through an enclosed passageway to the knife assembly.
In the foregoing commercial machines, the rotating knife assembly generally is supported by ball bearings or support rollers, and is driven mechanically by a drive belt or gear mechanism. The '881 machine employs a hydraulically driven turbine to rotate the knife assembly which rides on graphite-copper ring bearings press fit onto the turbine rotor. The bearing surfaces of the ring bearings are lubricated by a circulating stream of water.
One problem associated with ball bearing supported knife assemblies is that the bearings fail relatively frequently and must be replaced. Another problem is that the ball bearings typically are located near the interior of apparatus, requiring a significant amount of time to dismantle the equipment in order to replace the bearings. Both problems result in relatively high equipment down-time and expense.
While the '881 apparatus avoids the use of ball bearings to support the rotating knife assembly, it appears to be designed to channel lubricating water past the graphite-copper bearing surfaces, which are subject to wear, to the interior of the knife assembly. Thus, the possibility exists that graphite-copper particles sloughing off the bearing surfaces may enter the downstream flow of helical strips. In addition, this apparatus appears to require a number of valves which must be properly adjusted to maintain optimum performance, thereby adding to the complexity of its operation.
The present invention provides an apparatus for slicing vegetables, such as potatoes and the like, into helical strips or other types of cuts.
One object of the present invention, therefore, is to provide a food slicing system that is relatively simple and efficient.
Another object is to provide a food slicing system that prolongs the life of the bearing system supporting the rotating knife assembly.
Still another object is to provide a food slicing system that is relatively easy to maintain.
Yet another object is to provide a food slicing system with a knife assembly that is easily accessible and removable.
Another object is to provide a food slicing system which is less expensive to manufacture and less likely to break down.
A further object is to provide a food slicing system that eliminates the need for mechanical bearings to support the knife assembly.
Still another object is to provide a food slicing system having a fluid lubrication system which does not intermix with the fluid carrier used to transport cut food pieces.
Yet another object is to provide an improved food slicing system for slicing potatoes and the like into helical strips.
These and other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will be more readily apparent from the following summary and detailed description, which proceeds with reference to the accompanying drawings.